1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the field of strain sensors and more specifically to strain sensors which have greatly enhanced dynamic range.
2. Prior Art
Strain sensors are currently used in numerous applications. Recently, fiber optic strain sensors have become known. Such sensors offer several advantages over conventional strain sensors. These include, but are not limited to, electromagnetic immunity, high resolution and relative ease of interrogation. However, such sensors suffer from the disadvantage of being limited to strains on the order of 1%, after which they usually fail in a fatal fashion, (i.e., they are destroyed).